1. Technical Field
Aspects and embodiments of the present invention are directed generally to helmets, and more particularly to sports helmets including ventilation features.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Sports helmets are used in many sports for protecting the head of a wearer. Such sports may include, for example, biking, skiing, hockey, lacrosse, and football, and so-called “extreme sports” which may include snowboarding, rock or ice climbing, and skydiving.
In some examples, a sports helmet may include an outer shell designed to provide strength and rigidity for impact resistance and an inner pad mounted to an inner surface of the outer shell and configured to contact the head of a wearer. A sports helmet may protect the head of a wearer by providing impact resistance and/or by absorbing shocks when the helmet is impacted. The outer shell of a sports helmet is, in some examples, made of rigid material such as a hard plastic to facilitate impact resistance, for example, to distribute a force from a point impact across a large area of the shell of the helmet, while the inner pad is made of a resilient shock-absorbing material such as a polymeric foam.
In some examples, sports helmets include one or more ventilation openings which may provide for air to pass through the outer shell and inner pad of the helmet to assist in the dissipation of heat from the head of a wearer of the helmet.